Advertisement

Food News

Umami Burger's Success With The Vegan Impossible Burger Is Fueling Their Expansion

Umami Burger seems to have found incredible success in their partnership with Impossible Foods. So much so, in fact, that CEO Daniel Del Olmo sees the plant-based patty not just as a single menu option, but as the base for a vast lineup of Impossible Burgers that stack up with Umami's regular offerings.

Umami's newest innovations, Del Olmo told Foodbeast, are just the beginning of that vision. They just unveiled a brand new Vegan Truffle Burger (with a savory vegan truffle cheese), a Vegan Barbecue Burger, and a classic Impossible Burger as new flavors on their menu. While they will be on the menu for three months' time, Del Olmo hopes to have more Impossible Burger creations ready by then to join them.

Advertisement

This marks the beginning of a new phase for Umami and Impossible Foods, who have collaborated on classic burgers and a trio of sliders (inspired by Jaden Smith) in the past. The launch of these three burgers, though, coincides with the appeal they have had so far to the public as well as Del Olmo's creative vision for the future of this partnership.

For Del Olmo and Umami, the Impossible Burger has become a huge success. After just selling 50 a day at the initial launch, the plant-based burger now accounts for a fifth of the company's entire sales, according to Del Olmo. Umami Burger general manager Gary Kinsinger also claimed that many of the new customers that show up weekly are there specifically for this buzzworthy vegan burger. This rapid growth in both sales and target audience has happened in the span of less than a year, so it's easy to see the Impossible Burger taking over even more of Umami's sales.

The success of the Impossible Burger should also play into Umami's expansion plans. Following an acquisition by SBE, the sit-down burger chain has been looking to go global with their brand. They plan to open 8-10 new locations per year in places like Japan, the Middle East, the UK, and Europe. While it's resulted in the closure of a few domestic locations, overall, plans are accelerating, and the company has their new vegan patty to thank for that.

Advertisement

Kinsinger told Foodbeast that in every market they've put the burger in so far, the Impossible has done "very well," as evidenced by the patty becoming a fifth of the chain's revenue. Thus, as the chain's aspirations and size continues to build, so should their innovation and spread of the Impossible Burger.

It's a win-win for both companies in this regard. Umami is definitely getting a boost in sales, awareness, and customer base by utilizing a well-known and quality brand for their vegan and vegetarian options. On the other hand, Impossible Foods could see their product make its way out of the USA for the first time, a major step forward for the plant-based meat movement.